Saturday, July 24, 2010

The answer is the Cape May Warbler (see female in photo, above), which usually lays six or seven eggs. Most other wood-warbler species typically lay four or five eggs in most instances. In extraordinary cases (that are seldom to rare), the Cape May deposits as many as nine eggs. In equally rare situations, merely four are laid.

Why does the Cape May lay eggs than other wood-warbler species? The answer may relate to the “boom and bust” cycle of its dominant food resource: spruce budworms (a larval form of a moth). When large population outbreaks of the spruce budworm occur, it behooves the Cape May to lay more eggs. Conversely, it makes sense that this species lays fewer eggs in years when spruce budworms are less plentiful.

Of course, this kind of phenomenon is not unique to Cape May Warbler. Many other bird species, in addition to other animals, act similarly in response to the presence or absence of food resources.

For more details about clutch sizes of North American breeding wood-warbler, see The Birder’s Handbook (Paul R. Ehrlich, David S. Dobkin, and Darryl Wheye)

Other life cycle information about USA-breeding wood-warbler species appears in a “Warbler Tips ID Chart” at my Web site: www.warblerwatch.com (After arriving at this site’s home page, click on the button title “Warbler Tips ID Chart.”

Which states hosts more nesting warbler species?

Search This Blog For Any Warbler Info Noted Here Since 2007

www.warblerwatch.com danieledelstein@att.net

Above, Biologist (M.S.) Daniel Edelstein riding an ATV while conducting raptor surveys at a proposed wind energy turbine site in the Wilson Range of Nevada.
Contact him at danieledelstein@att.net
Conducting field surveys since 1985 for common & special-status bird, mammal, amphibian, & reptile species (in addition to plant species), Daniel is a freelance Certified Wildlife Biologist Associate (warblerwatch.com) He possesses a M.S. in Natural Resources.
His permits:
USFWS Endangered Species Recovery Permit for Ridgeway's Rail, California Red-legged Frog, and California Tiger Salamander (TE101743-0), as well as Memorandum of Understanding to conduct Ridgway's Rail and CA Black Rail surveys.
His resume is present at
https://warblerwatch.files.wordpress.com/2015/01/edelstein-certified-wildlife-biologist-resume-2015.pdf

By the first week of March, which returning wood-warbler is the second or third most abundant wood-warbler species in the USA?

Can you identify the correct order (top to bottom) of wood-warblers in the five photos on the left from the 11/10/10 posting?

In how many states does Kirtland's Warbler regularly nest?

With a clutch of six or seven eggs, this wood-warbler lays the largest clutch:

Which are three of the earliest dispersing/migrating wood-warblers?

How many New World wood-warbler species exist?

Can you identify the correct order (top to bottom) of wood-warblers in the five photos on the left from the 3/2/10 posting?

Which wood-warbler is typically the earliest long-traveling migrant back on the East Coast? West Coast?

Which wood-warbler species has gained the most population by percentage in the last 20 years?

FAB FIVE QUIZ: From top to bottom, can you correctly ID the species in order from the following choices?

Approximately how many miles are trans-oceanic migrating Blackpoll (Warbler) traveling if they begin in New England and arrive in northern S. America (For help, see the 9/29/09 article)?

Pretend you're attending an upcoming Christmas Bird Count (CBC) in any of the lower 48 states. Which two wood-warbler species are the most likely ones MOST people would see?

Can you name two wood-warbler species that are breeding endemics to one USA state?

Beyond it now being the most likely viewed wood-warbler from the Upper Midwest to the upper Eastern Seaboard/upper New England area, the Yellow-Rumped Warbler holds the following distinction from most other USA wood-warblers (& other songbirds):

In terms of sheer numbers, which wood-warbler is the most common on our beautiful, amazing, avian-filled planet?

How many wood-warblers in North America look similar year-round because they don’t undergo a prealternate molt?

Given the "Dendroica" genus hosts the greatest number of North American wood-warbler species, which member of this genus is the largest in the continental USA?

Can you name the two hybrid forms that sometimes result when Golden-Winged and Blue-Winged Warbler mate?

On the West Coast, which wood-warbler is one of the earliest dispersing species after nesting?

Among the species listed in the 5/29/09 article (on the left), which one is considered extinct?

Common Yellowthroat was often previously named differently in many field guides as XXXXXX Yellowthroat?

Which common wood-warbler's breeding range is split into an eastern and western subspecies breeding population?

Which sequence of weather conditions typically result in a "fallout" of wood-warblers during the spring on the Gulf Coast?

Yellow-Breasted Chat

If it's not a wood-warbler, then into which taxonomic placement has Yellow-breasted Chat previously been proposed?

Which "New World" wood-warbler species has the most extensive breeding area?

Unlike Blackpoll that undertake a long migration (see 1/8/09 article), which wood-warbler has populations that do NOT migrate?

What behavior displayed by American Redstart is different than most other songbird order members?

Which wood-warbler species spends the winter in large numbers in higher latitudes than any other wood-warbler?

(Audubon's) Yellow-Rumped Warbler

. . . is one of the four subspecies of Audubon's Yellow-Rumped Warbler, while another two are considered "Myrtle's" Yellow-Rumped Warbler. According to Jon Dunn and Kimball Garrett's "Warbler" field guide, subtle variations in the pitch (frequency level) of the call notes help distinguish an Audubon's vs. a Myrtle's subspecies (in addition, of course, to assessing their different field marks).

Is the song or call of the Yellow-Rumped Warbler subspecies (Myrtle and Audubon's) the best way to tell them apart?

Warbler Guy, do you provide us the answers to your quizzes (scroll down the page to see each new one)?

Given most songbirds hop on the ground, how many wood-warblers possess as an important field behavior the ability to walk?

Which wood-warbler species are some the most improbable and/or rare to see on the West Coast? (Answer at end of related article on left.)

Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas)

Next to the Yellow-Rumped Warbler, Common Yellowthroat is the next most likely non-breeding season wood-warbler to overwinter in extreme, northern latitude states, especially if a micro-habitat or mild winter exists.

True or False: More wood-warbler (Parulidae family) species nest in the USA & Canada than in the tropics?

Hermit Warbler (Dendroica occidentalis)

Like many resident tropical wood-warbler family members, the Hermit Warbler displays little seasonal change in plumage. Interestingly, young and adult birds in low elevation sites leave breeding territories before the start of prebasic molt (after the breeding season) and presumably move to higher elevations to molt.

Kirtland's Warbler (Dendroica kirtlandii)

Like all Dendroica genus members, the Kirtland's Warbler displays a characteristic feeding behavior that is termed "hover and glean" as it searches for insects during the breeding season.

In my opinion, the most challenging autumn/basic plumage wood-warbler to ID is:

Which is the single wood-warbler species that nests in the USA, but is not in the Parulidae family like all the other 51 other regularly-occurring wood-warbler species existing north of Mexico in North America?